Two Airport Gems of the East Coast: Florala, AL (0J4) and Marianna, FL (MAI)
We are on a two-day trip from Dallas to the Tampa, FL area. For day 1, we have planned to reach Marianna, FL.
Starting at the Aero Country airport at 8 am, the first leg brings us to Vicksburg, MS around noon. We refuel, take off, climb to our cruising altitude of 5,500 ft, open the Garmin Pilot on the iPad to look at the weather ahead, and are in for a surprise.
Minor thunderstorms northeast of Marianna have begun to blossom and start to form a thunderstorm cluster. The intense lightning and heavy rain is moving southwest and will engulf the airport before we get there.
We use the Garmin Pilot to check out alternate airports along our route: We go to the airport page, bring up the airports one by one and look for runway conditions, available fuel, and NOTAMS (Notices to Airmen), which tell about special facts and conditions affecting landing and takeoff.
The autopilot takes over navigation during that checking process, and the ADS-B system informs us about any airplanes near us. Thus we can carry out the search without worrying about navigation errors or getting too close to other airplanes.
Eventually we settle on the airport of Florala, AL. It is 60 nm west of the Marianna airport and not affected by the cluster of thunderstorms, which by now are raging over that airport.
As we approach the Florala airport and announce our intention of landing, there is a surprising reaction by the FBO on the ground, telling us wind speed and that there is no other reported traffic. Surprising, since in this day of ADS-B coverage of traffic and weather, most FBOs consider broadcasting such information to be redundant.
We land, taxi to the parking area, shut down the engine, and walk to the airport building.
Surprisingly, the door is locked. But then the attendant opens the door, asks us in, and turns out to be a most attentive host. His name is Raphael.
He offers a water bottle, which we gladly accept, and a cookie, which we politely decline. As he hears about our situation, he turns on the computer monitor for local radar weather, and tells that there is free WiFi.
We call the flight service to close the flight plan and inquire about the weather developments while we use WiFi to watch the radar images on the Garmin Pilot of our iPad.
The Flight Service briefer tells us that the thunderstorms are forecast to continue southbound, and that we should be able to fly safely to Marianna in another 30 min.
As we wait, we talk with Raphael. He explains that the airport specializes in the refueling of transiting Army helicopters, in particular hot refueling, where the turbines keep on running and thus do not require the tedious restart process. The airport has a specially equipped landing area for this operation.
We appreciate the advantage of hot refueling, having seen the alternate, slow method of shutting down the turbines for refueling and then restarting them during a stay at the Raton, CO airport years ago.
For our takeoff, Raphael walks with us out to the airplane and waves as we taxi to the runway. What a pleasant visit!
The short hop to the Marianna airport is without complications. The thunderstorms have moved south and left behind soaked grounds.
We land, walk to the terminal, and see that according to the schedule posted on the door, the FBO closes on Saturday at 5 pm. Our watch shows 4:45 pm, but that is Central Time, and thus we are late.
Nevertheless we rattle the door, and low and behold an attendant shows up. We later learn her name, Shayla. She is a most helpful person.
She explains that she was walking through the building to close up at 5 pm. This baffles us, since it is almost 6 pm Eastern Time.
No, no, she says, Marianna is on Central Time. So we are very lucky; a few miles farther east, we would have had Eastern Time and would have arrived too late.
She refuels the plane, we pay, and she gives us the key for the courtesy pickup truck to go to the hotel.
We fetch overnight stuff from the plane, install the canopy cover, the gust lock for ailerons and elevator, and the foam blocks sealing engine intakes. Then we drive to the hotel and begin to relax after a long and strenuous day.
So, thank you, Raphael at Florala and Shayla at Marianna for your help!!
Last but not least: We had selected Marianna for an overnight stay a year ago and got a lot of help by Loretta at that airport.
Indeed, when we called the airport after this year's visit to get Shayla’s name, Loretta answered the phone. After a brief introduction she fondly remembered our earlier visit.
All this means that flying around the US is much more than piloting a plane. One becomes part of a special world of courtesy, trust, and goodwill. Airports such as Florala and Marianna are a big part of that.
Starting at the Aero Country airport at 8 am, the first leg brings us to Vicksburg, MS around noon. We refuel, take off, climb to our cruising altitude of 5,500 ft, open the Garmin Pilot on the iPad to look at the weather ahead, and are in for a surprise.
Minor thunderstorms northeast of Marianna have begun to blossom and start to form a thunderstorm cluster. The intense lightning and heavy rain is moving southwest and will engulf the airport before we get there.
We use the Garmin Pilot to check out alternate airports along our route: We go to the airport page, bring up the airports one by one and look for runway conditions, available fuel, and NOTAMS (Notices to Airmen), which tell about special facts and conditions affecting landing and takeoff.
The autopilot takes over navigation during that checking process, and the ADS-B system informs us about any airplanes near us. Thus we can carry out the search without worrying about navigation errors or getting too close to other airplanes.
Eventually we settle on the airport of Florala, AL. It is 60 nm west of the Marianna airport and not affected by the cluster of thunderstorms, which by now are raging over that airport.
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| Thunderstorm over Marianna airport in center of picture, marked VFR. Screenshot taken after we had landed at Florala |
We land, taxi to the parking area, shut down the engine, and walk to the airport building.
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| Terminal of Florala, AL airport |
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| Raphael of FBO at Florala, AL airport |
We call the flight service to close the flight plan and inquire about the weather developments while we use WiFi to watch the radar images on the Garmin Pilot of our iPad.
The Flight Service briefer tells us that the thunderstorms are forecast to continue southbound, and that we should be able to fly safely to Marianna in another 30 min.
As we wait, we talk with Raphael. He explains that the airport specializes in the refueling of transiting Army helicopters, in particular hot refueling, where the turbines keep on running and thus do not require the tedious restart process. The airport has a specially equipped landing area for this operation.
We appreciate the advantage of hot refueling, having seen the alternate, slow method of shutting down the turbines for refueling and then restarting them during a stay at the Raton, CO airport years ago.
For our takeoff, Raphael walks with us out to the airplane and waves as we taxi to the runway. What a pleasant visit!
The short hop to the Marianna airport is without complications. The thunderstorms have moved south and left behind soaked grounds.
We land, walk to the terminal, and see that according to the schedule posted on the door, the FBO closes on Saturday at 5 pm. Our watch shows 4:45 pm, but that is Central Time, and thus we are late.
 |
| Terminal of Marianna, FL airport |
She explains that she was walking through the building to close up at 5 pm. This baffles us, since it is almost 6 pm Eastern Time.
No, no, she says, Marianna is on Central Time. So we are very lucky; a few miles farther east, we would have had Eastern Time and would have arrived too late.
She refuels the plane, we pay, and she gives us the key for the courtesy pickup truck to go to the hotel.
We fetch overnight stuff from the plane, install the canopy cover, the gust lock for ailerons and elevator, and the foam blocks sealing engine intakes. Then we drive to the hotel and begin to relax after a long and strenuous day.
So, thank you, Raphael at Florala and Shayla at Marianna for your help!!
Last but not least: We had selected Marianna for an overnight stay a year ago and got a lot of help by Loretta at that airport.
Indeed, when we called the airport after this year's visit to get Shayla’s name, Loretta answered the phone. After a brief introduction she fondly remembered our earlier visit.
All this means that flying around the US is much more than piloting a plane. One becomes part of a special world of courtesy, trust, and goodwill. Airports such as Florala and Marianna are a big part of that.
Have any questions or feedback about this post? Please share your thoughts in the comments.
It was my extreme pleasure to have helped you out that day Klaus and I'm glad you got your destination safely this is Raphael from the Florala Municipal Airport and I hope you continue flying for many more years sir enjoy the friendly skies and fly safe sir
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